So you’re a great cook… Here are ways to make money (on the side)

Want to make some extra cash doing something you love? If cooking is your passion, it can make a great side hustle. What’s better than cooking up goods, making people happy, sampling your own mouth-watering creations and making a little extra cash on the side in your own kitchen? Here’s how you start.

Cooking up a side-hustle: Chef lessons

If you have an abundance of skill and knowledge in the kitchen, why not pass that on? For money of course. Thumbtack’s average cost for a cooking instructor is between $80 – $130 per class. You can pick the area of expertise and build on that, or if you’re well versed in more areas than one, you can end up teaching different styles and charge per style per class. Not bad for a new side hustle, huh?

If you don’t want to teach in your home, you can offer teaching cooking classes at your client’s home. The benefit of doing this would be that after you leave, the mess is theirs and you can go back to your nice, clean kitchen. You can also teach classes over Skype if you decide that you want to be a virtual cooking coach. Either way, you’re making more dough.

Cooking up a side-hustle: Catering small events

Catering is a great way to earn some extra spending money and build your reputation up. If you know of someone having a party, ask them who is providing food and if no one, jump on that opportunity! For basic catering services (depending on what kinds of food you serve) you can charge by the plate or for the whole event.

Cooking up a side-hustle: Sell pre-made meals

Life gets crazy for some from time to time. Offering your services as a personal chef may be too time-consuming or too expensive for the client. A great alternative is to offer pre-made meals at a reduced cost. Making two or even three meals a day for the entire week can be cheap and easy, yet still profitable. Plus, you can cook up larger portions of the yummy meals and use them for yourself and your family as well.

Cooking up a side-hustle: Meal planning service

You can offer your skills as an at-home chef to build custom meal plans for your clients. Let’s say someone is living on their own and starting a diet or are diagnosed with medical conditions that require dietary restrictions. You can build on their tastes to create a custom meal plan by the week including and help outline a grocery list and basic diet-friendly recipes for them to continue their journey. If they are clueless in the kitchen, you could, once again, offer your pre-made meal plans.

Cooking up a side-hustle: Sell your own recipes

You can actually sell your recipes online or to individuals per request. This may not be the most lucrative option out there, but it’s a great way to get yourself (and your amazing foody skills) out there. You can try using sites like Fiverr to sell recipes or quick cooking tips to people in need. And if you’re feeling innovative, you could self-publish a recipe book with all of your best creations.

If you have the skill set, there is money to be made. Try your hand at hosting dinner parties for your friends with different menu items each time. Ask for their feedback on your cooking and new ideas and set out on your cooking side hustle venture.

If you are ready to get your side gig going but don’t have the cash, a LendingPoint loan may be a great option.

Even if your credit score is lower than you would like it to be, you do have personal loan options. A personal loan can even help improve your credit score. By taking out one of our personal loans. You can make affordable monthly payments and build your credit story by making on-time payments each month. As you continue to make your payments on time, you build your credibility and your credit history. Apply today!

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LendingPoint is a personal loan provider specializing in NearPrime consumers. Typically, NearPrime consumers are people with credit scores in the 600s. If this is you, we’d love to talk to you about how we might be able to help you meet your financial goals. We offer loans from $2,000 to $25,000, all with fixed payments and simple interest.